Parents’ engagement with schools plays an important role in students’ attitudes to school and their educational outcomes (Rah et al, 2009; LaRocque et.al, 2011). Much of the research focusses on the family-school contact, that tends to vary by social class, gender, but also by migrant background (Liu, et al, 2017). More recently, parental engagement research has moved on to research that recognises the impact of cultural discontinuities between home and school, and the significance of school cultures in addressing the needs of individuals from the diverse range of identities and cultures. Schools tend to differ regarding the level of engagement they take with parents, ranging from those that seek to empower parents as co-educators of their children, to those that promote a distinct ‘expert’ and teacher-led approach. This paper draws on data collected for a broader European study on the topic of migrant parents’ engagement with their children’s education. In particular, the study focussed on the necessary conditions for the interaction between schools and parents to facilitate migrant parents’ engagement in the school-based education of their children in the host country. It sought to answer the following questions: • How engaged and interested are migrant parents in the school-based education of their children? • How informed are migrant parents about their rights? • How informed and interested are migrant parents about the opportunities in being involved in the community of the school? • How interested are migrant parents in being involved in the school-based education of their children? • How do schools encourage migrant parents to be involved in the school-based education of their children and in the community of the school? The qualitative explorative study involved interviews with school staff and migrant-origin parents. This paper draws on interviews with school principals from 2016 that was followed up in 2023 to explore whether any changes have taken place in the case study schools. One primary school is located in an ‘old’ migrant receiving country (UK), while the other is situated in Ireland, that can be considered as a relatively new migrant receiving country. The topics explored include: principals’ understanding regarding parental involvement and parental engagement; vision with regard to engagement of parents/guardians; approaches taken regarding promoting participation by parents/guardians; level of the engagement of parents in the school. Both schools were chosen based on a high proportion of migrant children in the school and schools’ innovative practices in parental engagement.

LaRocque, M., Kleiman, I. & Darling, S. M. (2011) Parental Involvement: The Missing Link in School Achievement. Preventing School Failure: Alternative Education for Children and Youth, 55:3, 115–122. Liu, Z. & White, M. J. (2017) Education Outcomes of Immigrant Youth: The Role of Parental Engagement. Annals of the American Academy of Political and Social Science, 674:1, 27–58. Rah, Y., Choi, S. & Nguyẽn, T. S. T. (2009) Building Bridges between Refugee Parents and Schools. International Journal of Leadership in Education, 12:4, 347–365.